Georgia Tech has selected Atlanta sustainability expert Shan Arora to serve as the first director of the Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design. That’s a key position for the building, which must be operated to meet strict Living Building Challenge standards and also is intended to serve as a model for other environmentally regenerative projects across the Southeast.

Arora’s appointment follows a search led by Architecture Professor Michael Gamble, who heads the university’s Living Building Academic and Research Council, and Anne Rogers of the Georgia Tech’s Office of Sustainability.

“Shan brings a wealth of experience in bringing people together around sustainability,” Gamble said in an announcement posted by Georgia Tech. “He demonstrates the ability to reach a variety of audiences effectively and will make an excellent addition to the project team.”

Currently, Arora serves as program manager for policy and systems technology at Southface, the Atlanta-based nonprofit that promotes sustainable buildings and communities. In eight years at Southface and four in the sustainability sector before that, he’s developed expertise in planning, public policy and community engagement. Among other responsibilities, he’s project manager for GeorgiaEnergyData.org, a Southface program that creates “maps, charts, and tables that allow users to easily understand Georgia’s energy consumption, electricity generation and solar assets.”

Arora is slated to start in his new role on July 23. The building, which is currently under construction, is funded by the Kendeda Fund. The terms of that grant also including funding for the director’s position.

As the Georgia Tech announcement describes it, the Kendeda Building director “will be responsible for the programmatic and operational oversight of The Kendeda Building and will have ultimate responsibility for coordinating efforts to ensure the operation and certification of the building under the Living Building Challenge 3.1 standards. In addition, this role will champion sustainable design in the built environment throughout the Southeast.”